Lin Qingge continued to flip through, only to find that the thick stack of letters had reached its end without her realizing it.
Still somewhat unsatisfied, she turned the letters over and noticed a small line of text written in charcoal on the back of the last page.
Unlike the neat, decorative small script from before, the handwriting in charcoal was very messy.
Little Ge'er, your sister-in-law has been by my side, never leaving.
This has forced me to secretly leave messages for you only when I go to the latrine.
Because there's still something very important I haven't had a chance to tell you!
Actually, returning is very simple. All you need to do is willingly allow the female protagonist of this small world to kill you.
After this body completely loses its vitality, your soul will be able to return to its original place!
Remember, it must be the female protagonist who personally takes action!
And she must be willing, genuinely wanting to kill you from the bottom of her heart!
Female protagonist?
Lin Qingge stared at these two words for a long time, and her brain suddenly couldn't keep up.
If Lin Moyuan was the so-called male protagonist, then wouldn't Shangguan Wan'er, the former crown princess, who had a tragic love affair with Lin Moyuan because of Lin Zimo's tragic death, be the female protagonist?
Then... the one who killed her adoptive brother...
Lin Qingge, with a blank mind, looked dazedly at Leng Ningyue beside her.
As fellow modern people, Leng Ningyue, with her international flair and decorative small script English, would definitely understand.
So...
As if Lin Qingge's questioning gaze was too obvious, Leng Ningyue opened her mouth. Just as she was about to say something, a deafening, earth-shattering roar suddenly came from outside.
"What's going on with Lin Moyuan?
He agreed to fire an arrow when the job was done, why did he switch to cannons?"
Now, whenever this name was mentioned, Lin Qingge’s teeth itched with hatred.
How could that guy, who neglected his vast empire to curry favor with her Ningyue sister all day long, be the male protagonist?
"My Lord, you're truly wronging Big Brother Lin~
From my understanding of Big Brother Lin, this doesn't seem like his doing~
After all, our purpose in coming here is to catch Scholar Lin off guard, so we've focused on being agile and light, and we haven't brought any cannons~"
"Since it wasn't Lin Moyuan, it must be Lin Yan, who just ran out.
He obtained the formula and blueprints for making gunpowder and cannons through spies from the Zhennan Royal Mansion. It's not surprising at all that he'd use the more destructive cannons as his final trump card.
Damn it!
Why didn't I think of this before!"
Lin Qingge irritably scratched her head, her disdain for the so-called male protagonist growing.
"What on earth is Lin Moyuan doing?
After so long, he still can't even deal with remnants of the former dynasty?"
Where was the promised protagonist's halo?
If the protagonist's halo could fail so easily, would her adoptive brother have gone through so much trouble?
The sound of cannons intensified, and sand and stones began to fall from the ceiling of the treasure chamber.
Staying any longer might be dangerous.
Lin Qingge hurriedly called everyone to leave. Yan Tinghao volunteered to scout ahead, but was preempted by Lu Huaiying, the forward scout.
"My Lord, due to the cannons, there has been a large-scale collapse in the cave.
The path we came by is blocked by fallen stones. Even if a few of us combine our strength, we can barely move them, and time..."
Hearing the bad news brought back by Lu Huaiying, everyone sank.
Although he didn't finish his sentence, the meaning was clear.
The treasure chamber was precarious, and time was their most precious commodity.
However, not everyone present was frowning.
Lin Qingge raised her leg and kicked Lu Mingxuan, who was standing there with his head bowed, in the calf.
"You brat, if you keep pretending, it'll be too much. Hurry up and lead us out!"
The command made Lu Mingxuan forget the pain in his leg. He suddenly looked up, disbelief etched on his face, and said,
"My Lord, you know everything?"
"Tsk, your pathetic acting is something you dare to show off in front of me?
Uncle Wang is so shrewd, how could he have given you, this dead weight, to me for no reason?
Besides, you've been overly 'lively' all the way here.
If it were usual, given your timid nature and aversion to risk,
forget helping find mechanisms or prying rubies from dragon claws, you'd be clinging to Lu Huaiying's side every second, seeking protection."
Of course, if Ling Han were here, Lu Mingxuan would have abandoned his own cousin and steadfastly hidden behind Ling Han.
Additionally, Lin Qingge didn't mention that after reading the personal letter left by the former imperial princess, she knew that this so-called treasure of the former dynasty was itself a trap designed to entice people.
If that were the case, why would Uncle Wang, the guardian of the treasure, be here?
Was he truly guarding the treasure of the former dynasty?
If not, what exactly was he guarding?
"The reason you are so brazen is simply because you believe this cave containing the treasure of the former dynasty poses no threat to you.
In other words, you already know all the mechanisms here!"
"As expected of you, My Lord."
Lu Mingxuan showed no embarrassment at being caught. Instead, he cupped his hands respectfully and bowed, saying,
"Lu Mingxuan, disciple of Wang Dachui, the eighth-generation guardian of the Lin family, greets my master!"
"Master?
Lu Mingxuan, My Lord is My Lord, how did he suddenly become your master?
And what is this about the nth generation guardian of the Lin family?
Your subordinate is also your Lord's right-hand man!"
While Yan Tinghao was speaking indignantly, Lin Qingge had already instructed Lu Mingxuan to quickly find a way to lead everyone out of here.
Just as Lin Qingge had predicted, Lu Mingxuan had not only learned the entire cave's mechanism layout from Uncle Wang, but he also knew of a secret passage leading directly from the treasure chamber to the outside.
Vaguely hearing the sound of water, Lin Qingge's expression suddenly became solemn as she connected the dots:
"Not good!
The mechanism used to store the pond water has malfunctioned!
Before long, this place will be completely submerged by the inflowing pond water!
Lu Mingxuan, have you found the secret passage yet?"
"My Lord, don't rush me. I've only been here once, many years ago, how could I possibly remember every detail!"
Lu Mingxuan complained verbally, but his actions were unhurried.
Soon, there were a few heavy yet crisp 'clicks'.
Then, the giant dragon on the wall slowly opened its mouth!?
"My Lord, I've finally found it!"
Lu Mingxuan, who was extremely cautious about his own life, said this before scrambling into the beast's gaping, fanged maw.
Everyone followed closely. Although the dragon's mouth was barely wide enough for one person to pass, survival was the priority at this moment.
As there were no such complicated turns, in about fifteen minutes, everyone returned to the surface.
This feeling of being charged for an hour only to talk for five minutes made Lin Qingge very unhappy.
She kicked Lu Mingxuan, who had kept quiet, again, and then leaving everyone behind, she pulled Leng Ningyue and hurried away.